Dallas Stars winger Ales Hemsky sealed a win with an empty-net goal.

The problem was, the puck - seemingly intended to be passed back to a defenseman - went into his own net, giving the Anaheim Ducks some much-needed insurance in a game that ended 3-1 in their favor.

Oops.

The goal was credited to Ryan Getzlaf.

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The New York Islanders are hurting in net.

The club recalled goaltender Christopher Gibson on an emergency basis Monday in light of injuries to Jaroslav Halak and Jean-Francois Berube.

Halak has been sidelined since early March with a groin injury, and, at the time, was ruled out for at least six weeks. Thomas Greiss was then thrust into the starting role, with Berube backing him up.

Berube played the entirety of the Islanders' last game, a 5-0 loss Saturday to Pittsburgh, but has been listed as day to day with a lower-body injury.

Enter Gibson, the fourth-string option who's made one appearance at the NHL level and carries a .909 save percentage in 42 AHL games this season.

With five games remaining, the Islanders hold the first wild-card spot, two points ahead of Philadelphia and three points up on Boston.

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Players are worried the NHL isn't clamping down hard enough on blows to the head.

So says Florida Panthers captain Willie Mitchell, whose career is on hold after suffering his seventh concussion earlier this season.

"There's a concern with players. Guys are worried about it. Guys talk about it - the league isn't doing enough to protect the players," Mitchell told Arash Madani of Sportsnet.

"A couple of years back, a 20-game suspension was a message. You'd be missing games, you get a big chunk of money taken from your pocket - a quarter of your (annual) salary gone. Those suspensions had gotten the game safer - still physical, still fast. Shanny (Brendan Shanahan, former Department of Player Safety head) did a great job. But it's not like that now."

Mitchell's comments followed the league's decision to suspend Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith six games after he swung his stick at an opponent's face. The apparent "star treatment" doesn't seem to be sitting well with some players.

"Players are worried and guys talk about it here in the dressing room, but don't say much (publicly) because they think they're going to get fined," Mitchell said. "But I can tell you: players are worried about it.

"I'd like to think I'm a rational guy. I'm not an F-U guy. I'm not criticizing the league as a whole. If my game slips, a coach will come tell me, it's slipping. Well, on trying to protect us, the league is slipping."

It remains up in the air whether Mitchell will be able to rejoin the Panthers for the playoffs. He's cleared to play, but there's great concern over what could happen if he suffers another head injury.

Whether or not he's able to make an impact on the ice, he's intent on speaking out and ensuring others don't meet the same fate.

"I want to make sure this guy and that guy doesn't have to go through this," he said. "Even if I'm not playing, I can show leadership within the situation. I'm talking to the kids about it. I want them to be thoughtful and educated, and God forbid they're in the same situation as me."

Mitchell, 38, has appeared in 46 games for the first-place Panthers this season, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

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Brendan Gallagher is a big Toronto Blue Jays fan.

The feeling isn't mutual, though.

The Montreal Canadiens forward has a shirt signed by Opening Day starter Marcus Stroman, who was quick to remind Gallagher that his loyalties lie in "The 6."

It seems the rivalry between the Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs extends into all corners of the sports world.

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Patrick Roy was unimpressed by Matt Duchene's milestone moment.

The Colorado Avalanche head coach ripped his leading scorer for celebrating emphatically after reaching the 30-goal plateau for the first time in his career late in a blowout loss to the St. Louis Blues.

"The thing I have a bit of a hard time with is the reaction of (Duchene) after he scores," Roy said at his postgame scrum. "It's a 4-0 goal. Big cheer. Are you kidding me? What is that? It's not the (reflection) that we want from our guys. Not at all."

Roy, who went on to openly question the leadership capabilities of his core, saw Mikkel Boedker scramble to collect the 30-goal puck.

Duchene was less enthusiastic in the locker room.

"(The playoffs) is all we care about, all I care about," he said. "Obviously it's a nice milestone, but I'm not thinking about it at all right now. I'm just very disappointed about this loss tonight."

The loss is their fifth in six games, and although the Avalanche have squandered another opportunity, the Minnesota Wild have lost three straight themselves, keeping Colorado breathing in the wild-card chase.

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St. Louis Blues netminder Jake Allen exited Sunday's victory over the Colorado Avalanche after an 11-save first period.

It remains unclear what forced Allen from his start, as he was able to finish out the period and wasn't in obvious distress at any point. But head coach Ken Hitchcock did confirm with the NBC broadcast that he suffered an injury.

There was no update after the game. He will be evaluated further Monday.

Allen missed 17 games beginning in early January with a knee injury, whereas his partner, Brian Elliott, has missed stretches throughout the season, as well.

St. Louis' third-string goaltender, Anders Nilsson, finished the game, preserving Allen's win.

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